Washing-machine.



F. V. PEPPER.

WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, 1910.

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P. V. PEPPER.

WASHING MACHINE.

.APPLIOATION FILED MAY s, 1910.

Patented May 9, 1911.

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UN ITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK V. PEPPER, OF

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

WASHING-MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

.Be it known that I, FREDERICK V. PEPPER, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of Los Angeles, county of Los Angeles, State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in "Washing- Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that type of wash ing machines in which the clothes are washed by means of vertically reciprocating pounders operating in a clothes receptacle; and the object thereof is to provide a simple and etlicient device, in which the clothes pounders are automatically shifted from point to point in the clothes receptacle and to provide a pounder of high efficiency. I accomplish these objects by the machine described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a side elevation partly in section of my improved machine. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail partly in central section of the pounder. Figs. 3 and 4t are enlarged detail views to illustrate the connection between crank wheel 33 and wrist pin 37. Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail showing a connection of arm 16 with arm 15 and some of the adjacent parts.

In the drawings 5 is the base frame in the center of which is rigidly secured a tubular bearing G. In the bearing is mounted a shaft 7 upon the upper end of which is secured a spider 8. Upon the outer ends of this spider is secured an annular ring 9 provided with an internally projecting flange 10, upon which flange the tub or clothes receptacle 11 is placed when the machine is in position for use. This ring is supported by rollers 12 revoliibly mounted on the base frame. Below bearing G and secured to shaft 7 is a ratchet wheel 13 which is adapted to be engaged by dog 14, which dog is mounted upon arm 15 revolubly mounted upon the lower end of shaft 7. To arm 15 is secured a pitman 1G having a knuckle joint 17 therein. Bolt 15L which secures dog 14 to arm 15, also secures pitman 1G to arm 15. This pitman is pivotally secured to the lower end of lever 18, which is pivoted at 19 in bearings 20 secured to shank 21 of the upper frame 22. Shank 21 has a slot 23 eX- tending therethrough, through which slot bolts 24 pass, whereby the shank is adjustably secured to the top of leg 25 of the base frame. Bolts 2-1 also pass through holes in Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 5, 1910.

Patented May 9, 1911.

Serial No. 559,591.

the top of this leg. The upper frame is U- sliaped, and the oiitei' ends terminate in bearings 2G in which is revolubly mounted a hollow shaft 27, on the outer end of which is secured an operating wheel 28 which is provided with a handle 29. Within the hollow shaft is another shaft 30 which is provided with a pin 31 that projects through a slot 32 in the hollow shaft and keeps the two shafts from separating and causes the inner shaft to rotate with the outer one when the outer shaft is rotated. Upon the outer end of shaft 30 is secured a crank wheel which has an eccentric cam groove 33 in the face thereof. Shaft 30 passes through and is revoluble in vertical pounder frame 34, which has arms provided with bcarings 35 at the top and bottom thereof. In these bearings is mounted a pounder shaft 3G, to which is secured wrist pin 37 between said bearings, which pin enters the cain groove 33 of the crank wheel to reciprocate the pounder shaft vertically. The upper frame carries an arm 38 in which is revolubly mounted a shaft 39 on the upper end of which is a beveled pinion r4:0. This pinion meshes with a mutilated gear 4l secured upon hollow shaft 27. Shaft 39 has secured upon the lower end thereof a crank arm 42, which crank arm is connected by pitman t3 with the vert-ical frame The lower end of pounder frame 31 is connected by link bar 44 with the upper end of lever 18, and when said frame is moved horizontally said lever is operated to cause the partial rotation of the clothes receptacle through the connecting mechanism before described. Upon the lower end of the pounder shaft-is slidably mounted a conical *shaped pounder 15, which is open at the bottom. In the top of the pounder and preferably formed integral therewith is plunger chamber 4.6 which is open at the bottom and is provided with an internal flange L7 which supports a spiral spring 11S in said chamber, the upper end of which spring bears against the plunger 49 which is rigidly secured upon the lower end of the pounder shaft 3G. If desired the spring could be mounted upon the pounder as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2.

In the operation of my machine, the clothes with the necessary soap and water, not shown, are placed in the clothes receptacle, the operator grasps the handle 29 and rotates the operating wheel. This motion through connecting mechanism causes the continuous reciprocation of the pounder in the clothes receptacle. Vhen the teeth 50 at the top of the mutilated gear as shown in Fig. l, are rotated to engage the bevel pinion, said pinion is Vrevolved a half a turn, the teeth being arranged to effect that motion. This causes the pounder frame 34 to move outwardly to almost the center of the tub. It will be observed that this outward movement of the pounder frame will be effected when the pounder is at the top portion of its reciprocation. At the same time that the pounder frame moves upwardly, the clothes receptacle through connecting mechanism is partly rotated. The neXt revolution of thev operating wheel brings the pounder frame back to the side of the clothes receptacle as shown in the drawings, which motion is eifeoted while the pounder is at the upper port-ion of its stroke. At the same time the receptacle is partially rotated still farther, thus bringing the pounder to operate upon a dierent portion of the clothes in the bottom of the clothes receptacle. Each revolution of the operating wheel causes both the shifting of the pounder and i the partial revolution of lthe clothes receptacle so that new portions of the clothes are operated upon until a complete revolution has been made of the clothes receptacle when the further operation of the operating wheel repeats the operation heretofore described. The slot in the shank of the upper frame permits ofy said frame being adjustable vertically so that the machine can be adjusted for diiferent quantities of clothes which would be usually spread evenly upon the bottom of the clothes receptacle. It sometimes happens that the clothes are not evenly spread or that they gather in bunches in the receptacle. In such cases the pounder would not always come down squarely upon an even surface, but one edge would strike sooner than the other, and it might sometimes happen it would strike evenly upon a bunch of clot-hes before the full stroke of the pounder stem was accomplished. In such cases the spiral spring in the plunger chamber would yield and allow the plunger to pass downwardly while the pounder was quiescent. This downward movement of the plunger would force air and water out of the pounder chamber and through the clothes, thereby giving an additional etliciency to the operation of the pounder. It is always preferable in the use of the machine to so arrange the clothes that the pounder will be arrested by the clothes just before the plunger rod has made its full downward thrust so as to cause the plunger to force the air and water out of the pounder chamber through the clothes beneath the pounder.

Having described my invention what I claim is:

1. A washing machine comprising a clothes receptacle, a pounder adapted to reciprocate vertically in said receptacle; means to reciprocate said pounder;l means to intermittently and alternately move said pounder toward and from the center ofthe receptacle.

2. A washing machine comprising a clothes receptacle; a pounder adapted to reciprocate vertically in said receptacle; means to reciprocate said pounder; means to intermittently and alternately move said pounder toward and from the center of the receptacle; and means to intermittently rotate said receptacle.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 30 day of April 1910.

Gr. E. HARPAM, S. B. AUSTIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. C. 

